Topic: 2010/10: Castlevania: Aria Of Sorrow (GBA) - TerraEsperZ

[JonLeung]

Castlevania: Aria Of Sorrow

For this month's "Maps Of The Month" featurette, I wish to draw your attention to TerraEsperZ's Castlevania: Aria Of Sorrow (GBA) maps.

While in Japan, high school exchange student Soma Cruz goes to see the first full solar eclipse of the 21st century.  But when he and his friend Mina reach the gate of the Hakuba shrine, his senses dim.  The next thing he knows, they're in Castlevania, the home of the immortal Dracula.  Not only that, but Soma can absorb the souls of enemies and use their powers!  Now he must fight his way through Castlevania and, according to a mysterious man named Genya Arikado, make it to the master's chamber to be able to leave this castle within the eclipse.  But what secrets will he discover on his journey?

Even in the future (the game is set in 2035), the Castlevania series is mostly familiar.  Sure, there's soul-absorbing in this one, but it's still Super Metroid-inspired power-collecting, castle traversal gameplay.  But, one thing you can always count on to be different is the layout of Castlevania!  The castle hasn't let the trends of the future affect its mostly gothic design and architecture, but it's still quite different, as it is every time.  It doesn't have duality as in Harmony Of Dissonance, but this time it has an underground coliseum, a pirate ship, a large waterway system, floating gardens, and a gate to the Chaotic Realm!  Did I mention that it's inside an eclipse?

And what more could you ask for?  Why, maps to get around Castlevania, of course!  Multiple Mapmaker Of The Month TerraEsperZ always seems to have a number of ambitious projects on the go, but one that we are glad he has finished is the complete map of the third GBA Castlevania game.  As is almost tradition here on VGMaps.com, the month of October is a good one to revisit the halls of Castlevania, so if you find yourself lost in this castle of the future (and in an eclipse!) then count on TerraEsperZ to be your guide.  He's even labelled the items and bosses, and mapped out the Chaotic Realm and the Boss Rush challenge!

So to recognize the effort put into mapping the only work of architecture to be caught within the alignment of the sun and moon, TerraEsperZ's Castlevania: Aria Of Sorrow maps will be known as VGMaps.com's Maps Of The Month for October 2010.

[TerraEsperZ]

JonLeung, you sneaky bastard ! Had I known earlier I had to travel halfway across the world to get recognition from you, I would have done so earlier. But seriously, it's weird how anytime something exciting about me happens online, it's when I'm not home for a few days or more! Well, posting live from Paris ladies and gentlemen, I humbly accept this honour!

But seriously, I'm actually really glad to see these maps submitted for Maps of the Month. I'm not sure if I've said so earlier on this board (although I certainly thought it), but this is the project I feel I've put the most work and attention to details on:

-First off, I labeled everything but to be honest, it's one of those rare games where you can do so without hiding too much of the actual map.

-Second, I came close to giving up while mapping the underground waterway because I was incapable of replicating the water transparency exactly and regulars of the board *know* how obsessive I can be about accuracy (although I'm trying to quit, really!). I ended up finding out through various means and calculations (you don't want to know how many hours I wasted on those) the exact colors to use to replicate the transparency of the water itself, and for the surface and the waterfalls, I used a combination of transparencies and arithmetics in Paint Shop Pro that came somewhat close to something acceptable. After which I quietly moved to another section and never looked back for fear of obsessing over it again.

-Third, I took a lot of time making that border using in-game graphics to try and do something a bit better-looking that all my other plain maps since I really, *really* suck at layout and composition.

Oh, and I think I mentionned that I wanted to get the main castle map printed out and laminated whenever I get the time to do so. I'll be sure to post a picture of it here when I do .

[alucard]

These maps look great. I wish it was also mapped out for each individual section like Harmony of Dissonance is, but that would probably require redoing all the maps.

[Peardian]

Pretty impressive! I especially love all the item labels. I keep forgetting just how washed-out GBA games look sometimes, yet it still manages to look and feel right. Great job!

[TerraEsperZ]

These maps look great. I wish it was also mapped out for each individual section like Harmony of Dissonance is, but that would probably require redoing all the maps.

Didn't you request this before? I know someone did, but I can't remember who it was... Anyway, it's been long enough since I've initially made them that individual maps *might* be something I'd do. It wouldn't take much work to adjust the borders since I only made a few breaks to allow the various sections to align correctly, and removing them wouldn't take long. Don't hold your breath too much on this since there's a good chance I might not remember this once I get home (still a week to go in France).

[alucard]

These maps look great. I wish it was also mapped out for each individual section like Harmony of Dissonance is, but that would probably require redoing all the maps.

Didn't you request this before? I know someone did, but I can't remember who it was... Anyway, it's been long enough since I've initially made them that individual maps *might* be something I'd do. It wouldn't take much work to adjust the borders since I only made a few breaks to allow the various sections to align correctly, and removing them wouldn't take long. Don't hold your breath too much on this since there's a good chance I might not remember this once I get home (still a week to go in France).

I dont remember if I requested that on here or not prior to now. Maybe its a popular request.

[TerraEsperZ]

I'm actually semi-restarting this project. See this thread for details.